The last Week In Politics has highlighted the far-right and authoritarian nature of the Conservative party and the UK press. Plus, Brexit negotiations continued after MP’s summer holidays ended. Poundland have been exposed after using a government scheme to get jobless to work for them for free, Activate, a claimed non-affiliated Conservative grassroots campaign group launched to directly counter Momentum and the UN published a report on Human Rights Abuses by the Conservatives.
Meanwhile the countries around the world have been hit with severe flooding, North Korea launched a missile test over Japan.
Donald Trump pardoned a well-known white supremacist and 110 Rohingya Muslims have been killed by authorities in Myanmar.
UK news
Activate, a grassroots campaign that claim to be not affiliated to the Conservatives launched, however, it was quickly discovered that the individuals who run the group are directly linked to leading Conservative figures. Thus far, the group have endured a troubled start and have recently stated that they haven't launched' yet. This came after a WhatsApp chat group showed young Conservatives talking about "gassing chavs" and "chavocide", it has been reported that the members are ether linked to/leading members of Activate. In fact, a spokesperson for Activate, Sam Ancliff, appeared on the BBC and said no current/former member of Activate was a part of the WhatsApp group.
However, he was a part of that group as one of the phone numbers matches the one on his website.
After being warned last October that welfare cuts have led to "grave and systematic violations" of rights, the UK government is now under investigation. officials heard evidence from country-wide disability organisations that showed the governments ongoing human rights violations have put it in breach of the UN Convention on the Rights of Disabled People.
A collection of evidence submitted by the disability groups includes: Lack of accessible housing, decline in disabled children in education, cuts to health and social services. Rapidly growing use of compulsory detention and forced treatment powers contained in mental health legislation. Plans to cap funding for support that allows disabled people to work, the level of hate crime.
During the week, the Mail Online published a story about MPs demanding an inquiry over why a Christian 5-year-old girl has been fostered by a Muslim couple. The story, that was also reported in the likes of The Sun, Daily Express, The Telegraph, The Times, also stated that they banned Easter, crucifixes and bacon from the home and accompanied with a stock photo of a Muslim couple with a child, the women has a full-face veil. The problem is that the story was entirely lied about. Court documents show that the police removed the girl from her mothers care because of a drug and alcohol problem and the couple were a temporary placement, two facts ignored by the press.
The child herself has Muslim heritage, a fact only disputed by her mother and the courts have since cleared her Muslim grandmother to look after her.
The temporary foster parent did not wear a face veil but a hijab instead, the image was photoshopped. The mother hasn't requested that the foster parents are changed, Tower Hamlets council have confirmed that the couple speak English, nor did they ban Easter. There is also no evidence that they banned crucifixes or bacon, in fact, court documents show that they did not. Finally, the foster parents have been rated very highly by independent assessors. The story was manipulated and spun to further anti-Muslim extremism within the UK.
World News in brief
The death toll from monsoon floods that have swept Bangladesh, India and Nepal rose above 1,200. Millions have been left homeless. Hurricane Harvey battered the coasts of Texas and Louisiana.
Downgraded to a tropical storm, Houston suffered severe flooding; the mayor imposed a curfew to deter looters. At least 38 people died in Texas; that figure is expected to rise when the waters recede. North Korea launched an audacious missile test, firing an intermediate-range one over Japan and far into the Pacific.
The Japanese government said the test was an unprecedented, serious and grave threat to the countrys security. North Korea have since tested a Hydrogen bomb bigger than the one dropped on Hiroshima, an earthquake of 6.3 magnitude was felt nearby the test site. After attacks on police stations that killed 12 officers, the security forces in Myanmar launched a crackdown on alleged Rohingya militants that left at least 110 people dead. More than 18,000 Rohingya Muslims have since fled across the border to Bangladesh
